Page 35 of Beyond The Stars

Qamar sniffed. “Where y’all husbands at?” he asked, changing the subject.

Janay kissed her teeth and crossed her arms before slamming her back into the couch. She hated how Qamar treated her in front of his family. It had all the ladies giving her sad and pitiful glares while he did nothing to hide how he truly felt about her. Then to add injury to insult, he was buddy-buddy with Malaysia.

“Outside acting like they looking at the landscape when they really just trying to get away from us. French and Solar on their way too,” Tiny answered while scrolling through her phone.

“Yea, your daddy on his way,” Luna teased Qamar about him loving French and listening to everything he said.

Tiny shook her head. “Janay, you met French?”

“Um, I seen him but I won’t say we’ve met. He seems kind of mean,” Janay revealed, knowing she wasn’t well received by Qamar’s family. She’d tried so hard to at least get on French’s good side. Just from meeting him, she knew how influential the man was to her daughter’s father’s life.

“Mean?” Tiny was taken aback by the accusations. “That nigga is the friendliest nigga I know… sometimes he too damn friendly.”

“Right,” Luna agreed, cutting her eyes between Qamar and Janay. “Maybe it’s you.” She shrugged, digging Janay’s coffin even more.

Luna was usually a girl’s girl. She had no time for mess or drama but when it came to Qamar, she sometimes didn’t recognize herself. If she needed to be mean on his behalf, she was willing and ready. Qamar was her first baby, and she’d rather walk to the moon than to ever feel like someone was doing him wrong. From the moment she met Janay, she knew the pretty young woman wasn’t for him. The stars he had in his eyes at sixteen for Malaysia wasn’t even there and back then, Luna knew that was nothing but puppy love. Still, here they were, a family due to Janay birthing his second child.

Janay held her arms out. “Q, give her back to me.” The bite in her tone didn’t go unnoticed.

To keep his own attitude at bay, Qamar swiped his tongue across his teeth, swallowing his words while passing Belinay to her stank attitude ass mama.

When he bent down, he spoke through gritted teeth. “Don’t get beside yourself, Janay. She mine too, right?”

His light eyes flickered dark sending a chill down her spine. “Ye—yea,” she stuttered, patting her daughter on the butt as a habit.

“Family!” French called out, his loud voice saving Janay from the grilling Qamar was ready to give her. “Where my grandbaby slash niece?” he asked, rounding the corner to the family room that was large and open with a sweet scent filling the air.

“Which one are you? The granddaddy or the uncle?” Solar asked with Adrian Jr on her hip. If he could live in his mama’s skin, he would. While Aku and Apollo preferred their father when they were younger, now they preferred their space.

“Uncle Q!” Apollo barreled into Qamar like the linebacker he was destined to be. He was tall and thick, almost knocking Qamar down.

“Apollo.” Qamar hugged his nephew. “Why you ain’t in school, boy?”

“Cause you had a baby and we don’t live in Jade City so we had to drive and clearly, we can’t be at school and in the car at the same time.” Aku rolled her neck.

“Aye, chill out!” French fussed. His baby wasn’t a baby anymore. She had just gotten her period and everyone could kiss her ass.

Qamar cocked his head back. “Oh, I see what’s up with you. Come here, Aku.”

Like the little girl she used to be, she melted in her uncle’s arms. Qamar had always been her favorite and now that he was having kids of his own, she didn’t know how to accept his time and love being spread thin. To show her love for him, she loved on Esmeray all the time. She was the only child she let come in her room.

“You know I’ll always love you, right? You my first baby… made me feel like I could be the best girl dad ever.”

“I did give you confidence, huh?” Aku blushed cockily.

“Come get your kid, Solar.” French rolled his head towards the ceiling.

Solar laughed. “Oh, she mine now? She been yours since she was born.”

“He be cappin’, ma,” Aku called her dad out.

Once again, Janay cleared her throat.

“Girl, we see you.” Solar laughed before flopping beside her to get a good look at her new niece.

“You don’t see us?” Luna crossed her arms, feigning hurt.

Apollo walked up to her to give her a hug. They were almost the same height from how short Luna was. “Hey, my sweet boy.”

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